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BTS releases the 2017 Annual Report: Blowout Prevention System Safety

The U.S. Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) has released the 2017 Annual Report: Blowout Prevention System Safety, which provides information on equipment component failures occurring during drilling and non-drilling operations on rigs in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). The reporting of such events is mandated by the Well Control Rule (WCR), published by the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE), Department of the Interior. The publication of this report represents a groundbreaking collaboration between industry and government stakeholders and is a significant milestone in promoting safety on the OCS. The report includes an analysis of equipment component failures and other key information such as root causes of failure events, follow-up response to failures, and opportunities to improve data quality. In 2017, the first full year of mandated WCE reporting, 18 of 25 operators in the Gulf of Mexico reported 1,129 rig equipment component failure events, and the notifications involved 45 of 59 rigs operating in the Gulf of Mexico. The 18 reporting operators represent 90.2 percent of new wells drilled in the Gulf of Mexico. The report begins by analyzing aggregate equipment component failure data and then, in separate sections, presents statistics on the reported events for the two major types of BOP stacks (subsea and surface). Both types of BOP stacks were associated with component failures and most notifications were associated with the more complex subsea BOP stack (92.5 percent).

Key findings:

• The top four reporting operators represented 81.8 percent of reported component events and 32.7 percent of new wells spud in the Gulf of Mexico for 2017.
• There was a decrease in overall reporting from 2016 to 2017. The event reporting rate adjusted for rig activity (defined as events per 1,000 BOP days) decreased from 122.3 in 2016 to 59.8 in 2017.
• There was an increase in reporting equipment component failures while not in operation for rigs with subsea BOP stacks. The percent of subsea, not-in-operation notifications for 2017 was 86.4 as compared to 79.8 percent for 2016.
• There was a decrease in the rate of unplanned stack pulls for rigs with subsea BOP stacks. In 2016 the rate was 7.2 percent and in 2017 it was 5.6 percent.
• Based on follow-up documents submitted to SafeOCS, only 12 of the 18 components involved in unplanned stack pulls were sent to shore for further analysis by the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) or a third party, despite the expectation of a root cause failure analysis (RCFA) for every stack pull.
• Of 1,044 subsea events in 2017, one reported loss of containment of synthetic oil based mud (drilling fluid) during in-operation rig activity. No surface stack events resulted in loss of containment.
• Leaks remained the most frequently reported observed failure and wear and tear remained the most frequently reported root cause of failure events in 2017 as they were in 2016.

SafeOCS Program Expanded to Accept Equipment Failure Data

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) and the U.S. Department of the Interior's Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) today announced the expansion of reporting of 'near misses' on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) through the SafeOCS program to now include the confidential collection of equipment failure data in an effort to further reduce the risk of offshore incidents.

Effective immediately, the offshore oil and gas industry will have the option to submit equipment failure reports for well control equipment, required under the Well Control Rule (30 CFR 250.730(c)), directly through SafeOCS. Effective Nov.7, industry will be required to submit reports for pollution prevention equipment, required under the Production Safety Systems Rule (30 CFR 250.803), through SafeOCS as the Chief's designee. All reports submitted through SafeOCS are collected and analyzed by BTS and are protected from release under the Confidential Information Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act (CIPSEA).

"We are encouraging industry to quickly begin taking advantage of the SafeOCS expansion," said BSEE Director Brian Salerno. "Shared awareness of safety trends better equips us all to quickly focus on emerging issues and thereby drive down the risk of serious incidents."

In August 2013, BSEE and BTS signed an interagency agreement to develop and implement SafeOCS, as a voluntary program for confidential reporting of 'near misses' occurring on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). Today's expansion enables the SafeOCS system to be used to submit these required regulatory reports.

For notification forms, guidance, and additional information - or to submit reports, go to www.safeocs.gov.

SafeOCS SPPE Briefings for Industry

July 13 and 14, 2021

BSEE and BTS representatives will provide an overview of results from recent SafeOCS safety and pollution prevention equipment (SPPE) annual reports and data products. Please share this announcement with others in your organization who may be interested.

Briefing for Operators
Briefing for Original Equipment Manufacturers

New SPPE Form Training Webinar on Mar. 31 and Apr. 7

We are offering additional dates for our SPPE form training webinar. The training will cover how to submit a report, an overview of recent form changes to the form, and any questions you may have.

Two identical training sessions were hosted in February. If you missed these prior sessions, please follow the registration instructions below and share this announcement with others in your organization who may benefit from this training.

• Registration Instructions:
• Email petrina.collier@dot.gov with your name, company/organization, and which session you wish to attend. After your registration is processed, you will receive a confirmation email with information on how to connect to the session.

** Note: The training session for both days are the same. Please select the one that best suits your schedule. **

Third Training Session:
Second Training Session:

If neither of these times works for you, please email petrina.collier@dot.gov to schedule a separate training session.

New SPPE Form in 2021

The SafeOCS program has released an updated version of the SPPE (Safety and Pollution Prevention Equipment) failure notification form. Please use the new form for all 2021 SPPE failure notifications.

Share the news about the form update with interested parties within your organization and across the industry. Interested parties include anyone who may be responsible for reporting an SPPE failure.

• Where can I find the form?
• You can download the form here: SPPE Failure Form

• Why was the form updated?
• The form was updated to improve the following:
• Data quality
• Data collection consistency
• Data analysis and identification of learnings

• How was the form changed?
• This is an overview of the types of changes made to the form.
• Added a header
• Regrouped fields to create logical sections and better overall structure
• Clarified text for often misused fields
• Provided additional and remove unnecessary drop-down choices
• Modified input field type (e.g., offer drop-down choices when appropriate)
• Added key fields such as failure type and contact information
• Cleaned up acronym list

• Will there be training sessions?
• BTS will hold a webinar (date TBD) to review the new form, highlight changes, and answer any questions. More information on the webinar, including information on how to register, is forthcoming.

• Where do I submit completed forms?

Do not email completed forms. All forms must be submitted through the SafeOCS secure portal: https://safeocs.gov/sdp/sppe_home. If you do not already have an account, click "Create an Account." Once logged in, click "Upload Word Form" to submit your completed form.

In early 2021, you will be able to submit an online form rather than a word form. The online form is currently under construction.

• Who should I contact with questions or concerns?
• Please respond to this e-mail or send a message to the SPPE Program e-mail at SafeOCS@dot.gov.

New SPPE Form Training Webinar on Feb. 17 and 18

Please join us for an online training session to learn about the new SPPE form to be used for all 2021 failure notifications, available at https://safeocs.gov/sppe_home.htm (click "Submit Notifications and Supplemental Files"). During the training, we will discuss the reasons for the form update, the changes made, and answer your questions.

Please share this announcement with others in your organization who may benefit from this training.

• Registration Instructions:
• Email petrina.collier@dot.gov with your name, company/organization, and which session you wish to attend. You will receive a confirmation email with information on how to connect to the session.

** Note: The training session for both days are the same. Please select the one that best suits your schedule. **

First Training Session:
Second Training Session:

If neither of these times works for you, please email petrina.collier@dot.gov to schedule a separate training session.

SafeOCS ISD Program Update at OTC 2022

On May 5, 2022, SafeOCS provided an update on the Industry Safety Data (ISD) Program at the Offshore Technology Conference in Houston, Texas. In addition, they met with representatives from participating companies to discuss prospective program enhancements. Presentation materials from the program update portion of the meeting are available here.

Industry Safety Data Program for the Oil and Gas Industry: Phase 1 Report

The U.S. Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) has released the Industry Safety Data Program for the Oil and Gas Industry: Phase I Report. This publication provides information on a range of safety data including reportable and non-reportable events that were observed during oil and gas operations in the Gulf of Mexico, Outer Continental Shelf from 2014 to 2017. Nine companies participated in the pilot (Phase 1) of the Industry Safety Data program. Key learnings from this report include:

• ISD Phase I participating companies agreed on the value of sharing data for both consequential and lesser events which had the potential to lead to a major event.
• Legal and confidentiality concerns expressed by participating companies were satisfied with the protections afforded under the Confidential Information Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act (CIPSEA) and with the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement between BTS and individual participating companies.
• A process was developed to map data from individual companies to a single database thereby successfully addressing the technical challenge associated with collecting, mapping, and aggregating data from different company-specific databases.
• The Phase I participating companies collectively identified core data fields to be shared in order to generate meaningful learning opportunities for industry to further improve safety.

Although the results described in this report represent only nine companies and thus should not be interpreted as being representative of the entire offshore industry sector, they illustrate the data analysis process that could be implemented for the industry-wide ISD Program.

SafeOCS Informational Event

BTS and BSEE staff will provide an overview of SafeOCS, including the program's origins, goals, scope, and methods. Attendees will hear about SafeOCS progress to date, ongoing efforts, and near-term plans for the program. The speakers will explain how companies can participate in the SafeOCS Industry Safety Data (ISD) program. This session is intended to provide attendees with the opportunity to provide feedback and ask questions. Your feedback and questions will help us to expand the FAQs about SafeOCS and improve the overall understanding of this voluntary program.

Dates, locations and session times are listed below.

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First Event:

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Second Event:

Location:	BSEE GOM Regional Office, Room 545 1201 Elmwood Park Boulevard New Orleans, LA 70123
Date:	Thursday, December 6, 2018
Time:	1:00 pm to 3:00 pm (Plenary) 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm (One-on-one sessions)

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SafeOCS Informational Event

BSEE is sponsoring four events on the voluntary SafeOCS Industry Safety Data program to facilitate further dialogue with the industry and encourage participation in the program.

General plenary sessions will be offered, and interested parties can schedule one-on-one sessions with the SafeOCS team. The plenary sessions are intended to provide attendees with the opportunity to give feedback and ask questions. Your feedback and questions will help us to expand the FAQs about the SafeOCS and improve the overall understanding of the voluntary program.

Dates, locations and session times are listed below.

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First Event: Learn from BSEE about SafeOCS (Open Plenary)

BSEE representatives will provide an overview of SafeOCS, including the program's origins, goals, scope, and methods. Attendees will hear from BSEE on SafeOCS progress to date, ongoing efforts, and near-term plans for the program. BSEE will explain how companies can participate in the Phase II of the voluntary Industry Safety Data (ISD) program.

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The July 16th meeting will be followed by three day-long events in three different locations to have in-depth discussions with BTS technical staff about the SafeOCS data system. Each day will include an optional abridged version of the July 16th meeting, followed by one-on-one sessions. BTS staff will meet with your company to discuss the SafeOCS ISD program and explore specifics about how to join Phase II. If you have any questions about the SafeOCS program and why your company should participate, these sessions are for you!

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Second Event: Meet with BTS about ISD

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Third Event: Meet with BTS about ISD

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Forth Event: Meet with BTS about ISD

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